Composting with Effective Microorganisms

Our volunteer Anthony - happy while making new layer of compost.

In our organic garden you can find a special place next to the river where we are generating our own compost under the shade of a bamboo roof. The compost, a nutritious mix of brown and green was watered with Effective Microorganisms (EM). The resulting compost provides essential nutrition to the plants in our organic garden.Compost provides live nutrition for the earth, and takes care garden waste like leaves, cuttings, and grass. It becomes a living soil that grows healthy plants and keep away pests. The location should be a shady place out of the sun. To build compost, we layer dry, brown organic material, which is full of carbon, and green material which is full of nitrogen. Here at Jiwa Damai we use additional microorganisms to break down the compost: EM – effective microorganisms, developed in Japan. EM is mixed with the water in a 1:10 ratio and applied on each layer .All this is covered with cardboard, banana leaves, or old carpet to keep the temperature high. Keep the pile controlled. You can check heat and moisture by putting your hand inside the compost. It should not be too wet nor too dry, and can reach up to 60 degrees. At Jiwa Damai, in a tropical climate, the compost will be ready in two months. Is there any danger we should be aware of? Getting addicted :) Because when you work with making soil it is a rewarding thing. It makes you very happy when you have your own soil. Turning all this waste product into really fertile good garden soil is like magic. And it gives you gigantic lettuces.